


Castle of Shenanigans

by LegendofCarl



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Comedy, Drabble Collection, Fluff, Gen, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-18
Updated: 2018-09-06
Packaged: 2019-06-12 10:31:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 8,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15337962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LegendofCarl/pseuds/LegendofCarl
Summary: This drabble series was a spur of the moment idea that I got from a Lotor discord I joined (you guys rock thanks for the inspiration,) basically this drabble series is gonna comprise of all the Lotor/Paladin/Coran interactions we missed out on.





	1. Part 1: "It's Called a Milkshake."

Hunk stepped towards Lotor, holding out a tall cold glass of a thick white substance with a straw stuck in it for the half-Altean. Lotor looked at Hunk’s hand with a touch of confusion.

“Ah, thank you paladin Hunk, but I’m not quite sure what to do with this?” Lotor stared at the glass quizzically. It was cold to the touch and smelled sweet.

“Oh right, it’s called a milkshake, you drink it. I figured since you’re an ally now it only made sense to share one with you too.” Hunk smiled at the confused half-Altean.

“Oh I think Allura mentioned something about this. Though she seemed hesitant, I can’t seem to remember her reason why though.” Lotor looked at the glass carefully before taking his first sip, eyes lighting up, “this is incredible! Is this some traditional human beverage?” Hunk nodded, grinning at Lotor.

“Though you may not be too fond of—“ Before Hunk could finish his sentence Allura and Lance had entered the kitchen, Allura’s face turning to horror once she saw what was in Lotor’s hand.

“Lotor don’t! I warned you where those come from!” She rushed over in an attempt to stop him, remembering the horrifying truth of where humans get this milk. Lotor looked at her with confusion before taking another casual sip, Hunk and Lance snickering to themselves as Allura’s eyes widened in shock.

“What seems so wrong about it Princess? paladin Hunk told me this is a traditional Earth drink.” Lotor looked at the glass, trying to remember why the Princess was so against the idea of a milkshake, however nothing came to mind for him.

“Well because you see, the milk comes from Kaltenecker.” Allura stammered out, waiting for horror to rise on Lotor’s face, but when he decided to take another sip she gasped.

“The animal in the holodeck made this? Fascinating.” Lotor took another larger sip. By now Lance was a tad disappointed to get such a weak reaction from Lotor, whilst Hunk was glad that Lotor enjoyed his milkshake. And Allura? She was a touch disturbed by how casual Lotor had handled it all.

“Why do you look so confused Princess? Surely other culture’s food customs aren’t that much of a shock for you. I mean, didn’t Alfor ever let you try Galra cuisine? Now that is truly terrifying.” Lotor shuddered, remembering some of the foods Dayak had used to prepare for him.

“You know Lotor if you like milk so much I should try make some cheese for you sometime.” Hunk beamed, proud that at least one alien enjoys his hard work.

“Cheese? Is that made from the same milk that Kaltenecker makes?” Lotor seemed genuinely fascinated by all this Earth knowledge that was being thrown towards him.

“Mhm, but it’s even better! Depending on how you age it, what bacteria you let grow on it, if you let it hit the air…” Hunk continued to trail off whilst Lotor listened earnestly, he truly wanted to try this thing called cheese next.


	2. Part 2: "I Put What On My Face?!"

“Have you seen Lance?” Hunk asked Pidge, he hadn’t seen Lance all day and he was starting to worry.

“No, he’s probably just playing Killbot Phantasm 1, he’s been pretty miffed that he hasn’t beaten the secret boss yet.” Pidge replied as she continued to tinker away with the gadget she was working on.

“Really? The boss isn’t that hard you just have to—“ Hunk started until Pidge cut him off.

“I know. Lance just doesn’t like to listen.” Pidge replied.

In reality however, Lance’s disappearance had little to do with Killbot Phantasm 1. In actuality Lance had discovered something that completely horrified him. Smack dab in the middle of his forehead was the largest pimple he had ever had in his life, and he couldn’t bare anyone knowing the truth.

“Man is this thing painful.” Lance poked at it, careful to not pop it, not wanted to risk a potential acne scar on his beautiful face. Lance sighed, he couldn’t hide forever, but he could at least try. Carefully he snuck out of the bathroom in an attempt to make it back to his room without being noticed. Unfortunately for lover-boy Lance, prince Lotor was outside waiting to use the bathroom as well.

“Ah—oh look it’s prince Lotad.” Lance glared up at him and began sulking off.

“Lotad?” Lotor shrugged it off, assuming it must be some Earth reference. However his eyes continued to linger on Lance’s back as he walked away, “is something troubling you paladin Lance?”

“Yeah, you.” Lance turned around and glared, giving Lotor the chance to notice the large volcano forming on Lance’s forehead, Lotor’s face lit up with realization.

“Is that what’s troubling you? I may have something that can assist.” Lotor responded earnestly and Lance looked back at him with suspicion.

“And why would you help me?” Lance grumbled.

“Because I remember when I was a youth and how much grief my skin had caused me.” For you see being a halfbreed his genetics act differently, causing his skin to breakout extremely easy. Lotor led Lance towards the room Lotor was allowed to stay in whenever he would visit the Castle of Lions. Lance hesitated slightly before entering the half-Altean’s room. It was pretty barren aside from the desk that had mountains of science logs scattered over it and a small mirror above the desk. Lotor stepped over towards the desk, grabbing a small jar of a weird orange paste.

“Put a thick layer of this over your pimple and within a few doboshes it should be gone.” Lotor gave Lance a soft smile.

“How do I know this isn’t going to make it worse?” Lance replied, sceptical of Lotor’s intentions.

“I’m not sure, it may act differently on human skin, but isn’t it still worth a try?” Lotor replied looking at Lance in the eyes.

“I guess.” Suspicion dripped from Lance’s answer as he slowly took the lid off and took a brief of the paste, sweet mixed with sour how odd. Lance took a large dollop onto his finger and smeared it over his pimple, it was cool and tingled slightly but Lance kept it there for the next few doboshes as per Lotor’s instruction.

Once he wiped it off, Lance’s jaw dropped. All the redness, the swelling, the massive white bubble that looked like it was close to exploding, gone. Vanished. Lance blinked a few times trying to process this miracle paste.

“What is IN this stuff Lotor? It’s incredible!” Lance exclaimed touching his perfectly smooth forehead.

“Ah, it’s a mixture of a plant the blooms on planet Geldis, and Flaurax worm’s excrement.” Lotor stated matter-of-factly. However when Lance heard the last part to Lotor’s explanation his face turned to disgust.

“YOU LET ME PUT WHAT ON MY FACE?!” Lance screamed.


	3. Part 3: "What Are We, Fucking Animals?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Language warning
> 
> I strongly headcanon that if VLD wasn't a Y7 rated show, that Pidge would swear like the byproduct of a trucker and a sailor.

Lotor found the nights long, and lonely. He walked the empty halls of the Castle of Lions as he mulled over the events that lead him to his current position. He eventually found himself lost in those thoughts until he heard something in the distance. His curiosity peaked and he began making his way towards the sound.

Lotor found himself in the lounge watching the shortest of the paladins fidget around with the blue, and pink paladin armor. Pidge groaned in frustration as she attempting to remove the lid from the jar of paint, cursing under her breath as she struggles.

“Excuse me, paladin Pidge? May I ask what it is you’re doing exactly?” Lotor asked the green Paladin, leaning over her to get a better look.

“I’ve bitched at them time and time again, ‘the armor should colour-coordinate!’ It makes no fucking sense why the paladin of the blue lion is wearing fucking pink, and the paladin of the red lion is wearing fucking blue.” Pidge rambled as she continued to struggle with the paint, but Pidge looked up at Lotor with shock when he reached out and grabbed the jar from her hand to remove the lid.

“I believe I can help with this.” He smiled at the green paladin and she glared back at him.

“Why would you help me?” She questioned, not taking her eyes off of his.

“Simple, I find it to be a nuisance as well.” He replied honestly, passing her the jar of paint, “Now do you have any red?”

Pidge grinned towards the half-Altean prince, passing him the jar of red paint.

The next morning Pidge sat in the kitchen with Hunk, enjoying their goo’d breakfast, when they hear shouting as Lance and Allura enter the kitchen.

“Pidge what did you do?!” Lance shouted at her, Pidge just sipped at her glass of water and looked at Lance nonchalantly. As Lance was freaking out Lotor slipped into the kitchen undetected and sat beside Pidge.

“So paladin Lance, I suppose I should call you the Red paladin now?” Lotor asked him casually, although there was a slight tinge of a smirk on the half-Altean’s face.

“YOU IT WAS YOU.” Lance couldn’t contain his rage, his beautiful blue armor, painted red like roses. Lance began to lunge towards Pidge. Allura stayed silent, a touch disheartened at the loss of the meaning of her armor.

“Woah, Lance calm down cause technically it was Lotor who painted your suit, I painted Allura’s.” Pidge replied, Hunk was already on the floor laughing his ass off at Lance.

“I- You—Lotor—What.” It almost seemed as if Lance’s brain shut down once he realized, “But why?!” He cried.

“Yes I’m curious myself Pidge, Lotor. Why?” Allura asked, holding her now blue helmet in her hands.

Lotor and Pidge shared a glance before responding simultaneously, “We colour-coordinated, because what are we, fucking animals?”


	4. Part 4: "Space Mall Rats."

“I’ll bring you back something sparkly.” Lance smugly grinned towards Allura, whose expression fell flat.

“That’s what you promised the last time Lance.” Allura responded dryly. Lance’s smug demeanor shifted over to an awkward blush as he looked at his feet. Lotor carefully watched the two interact, staying a silent observer. He wasn’t positive where the group of humans had planned to go, but he was intrigued. Lotor watched as the group began to leave and decided he would take leave as well, albeit to find another route to the same destination.

Shiro, Lance, Hunk and, Matt stood in front of an Altean pod as Pidge opened the pod door. It had been weeks since they’ve had a chance to relax, and Lance had suggested going to the space mall. Unfortunately for Allura she wasn’t allowed to go yet again. She had caught a human cold from the paladins the day before, which has affected her quite differently than one would expect. Every time Allura sneezes, her chameleon-like abilities would flare up, so Coran decided it was best to keep her confined to the castle until it passed.

Matt had never gotten the chance to go before due to his work with the rebel coalition, so Pidge was excited to show him the Earth store. As they made their way into the pod the group hears a cough from behind them; Lance and Shiro turn around to look towards the intruder.

“I was wondering if I may be allowed to accompany you all.” There stood the half-Altean prince, Lotor, looking as confident as ever as he watches and waits for their response.

“Sure why n---“ Hunk began to reply until Lance chimed in.

“No, no, no…. Sorry prince Lowbar, there’s not enough room on the pod for you too.”

“What are you talking about Lance there’s plenty of room. “Shiro replied to Lance looking down at him and frowning, not appreciating the immaturity coming from one of his fellow paladins. Lotor smirked in victory as he followed the group into the back of the pod.

“Thank you Shiro.” Lotor responded politely, giving Shiro a small nod as well.

“Don’t mention it Lotor, you are our ally after all.” Shiro smiled towards Lotor and took his seat, Lotor sitting beside him, whilst Matt and Pidge went to sit in the cockpit of the pod.

Matt’s eyes lit up upon arriving at the mall, he had never felt so close to home in a long time, even if the mall had strange foods, and sights; it still felt familiar.

“Come on come on come on!! It’s this way!” Pidge grabbed her brother’s hand and began dragging him towards the Earth store; he couldn’t help but smile at his sister’s excitement. Lotor watched everyone from the back of the group.

“Man I wish I had some GAC so I could get something to eat.” Hunk groaned, looking towards the food court.

“Here, consider it my treat paladin Hunk.” Lotor gave Hunk a smile and leaned closer to him, placing several GAC currency notes in Hunk’s hands.

“Are you sure Lotor?” Hunk looked up at the half-Altean Prince, unsure if he should accept such a gift.

“Of course.” Lotor closed Hunk’s hand around the currency.

“Thank you! You know, you really aren’t such a bad guy after all.” Hunk grinned at the Prince. Eventually Lotor turns his attention to the others and how they seemed to gravitate towards the store that Pidge was so desperate to go to.

“OHHHH MY GOD!! IS THAT ROAD WARRIORS 3?!” Matt and Pidge screeched in unison, reaching for the only copy of their favourite childhood game. Pidge was shaking with energy and excitement, “We HAVE to get this!”

“I know Pidge, but do you have any money for it?” Matt asked, beginning to set the game down. Pidge looked a touch defeated at first.

“Well we could do what Lance and I did last time.” Pidge replied looking towards the large fountain in the distance.

“I’m not crawling around in a fountain again Pidge.” Lance groaned.

“No one is asking you to Lance, Matt you’ll help me right?” Pidge looked up to her older brother with her large, hazel-brown eyes.

“Yeah of course!” Matt responded, it wasn’t until Lotor coughed to get their attention that everyone looked towards him.

“It’s only 6000 GAC, allow me.” He responded as matter-of-factly as possible. Pidge and Lance’s mouths dropped.

“You have money??” Lance asked, shocked. This brought a chuckle from the Prince’s throat.

“Is that really such a surprise paladin Lance?” Lotor asked him, looking down towards the Cuban boy.

“I—well—“ Lance stammered, causing another chuckle to come from Lotor. Lotor reached out and grabbed the game from the shelf and inspected it.

“What is so special about this anyways paladin Pidge?” Lotor looked confused as he attempted to figure out this human artifact.

“Oh it’s a game, if you want I could show you when we get back to the castle.” She replied, eyes beaming with joy over the fact that she now gets another little piece of home to hold on to.

“A game? Curious.” Lotor squinted at the box, reading the back description of what the game is about.

“Do Galra even have games?” Lance asked snidely.

“Yes we do, only they’re a bit more physical than this game appears to be.” Lotor replied. During this time Matt and Shiro had both begun to fawn over something.

“I can’t believe they have this here!” Shiro exclaimed looking at the box set of Armored Fleet Dairugger XV that he was holding.

“I know! It’s been years since I’ve watched that, I can’t believe there’d be a copy here. And look Shiro they also have Gurren Lagann!” Matt seemed even more excited than his sister had.

“Don’t believe in yourself!” Shiro chimed in, “believe in me! Believe in the Kamina who believes in you!” Matt finished. The two men laughed together and smiled fondly at the box sets, a tinge of regret on their faces, as they reminisced about the past. Lotor watched the two with intrigue, finding it fascinating how their interest for something so trivial could spark such strong emotions.

“Should I add these to the pile as well?” Lotor asked the two of them, placing his hands on the box sets and looking at the two dorks. Matt looked surprised at how generous the Prince was being and Shiro gave him a grateful smile.

“That’d be amazing Lotor, but we don’t even have a way of playing these at the castle.” Shiro looked at the box set in his hand and began to put it away.

“You know they have portable DVD players in the back?” Pidge chirped in, holding on of those very same players in her hands. She grinned towards her brother as his eyes lit up.

“Pidge you’re a genius, but how would we charge it?” Matt questioned looking at it. It was at this point Hunk returned to the group, devouring strange, and colourful foods he had picked up from the food court.

“Oh I bet we could figure out a way to charge it with a Balmera crystal.” Pidge replied grinning at her genius, her brother matching her grin.

“Hey Hunk how did you even pay for all that?” Lance questioned, feeling ignored by the others he looked at the mountain of food Hunk had bought.

“Oh it was prince Lotor, he lent me some GAC, which reminds me,” Hunk struggled to reach the leftover currency in his pocket and outstretched his hand towards Lotor, “this was the leftover change.”

Lotor raised his hand to waive off Hunk’s gesture, “there is no need paladin Hunk think of it as a gift.” Hunk smiled at the Prince and the Prince smiled back. Lance rolled his eyes at Lotor’s gesture.

“Okay this is great and all, but can we hurry up and pay for this stuff so we can finally play Road Warriors 3?” Pidge asked impatiently looking at the crowd in front of her. Matt snickered a bit.

“Of course,” Lotor reached into his pocket, pulling out a small wad of large GAC currency notes and handing them to Pidge, “if you excuse me I’ll be back, there’s just one thing I need to attend to.” Pidge nodded.

“Of course Lotor, we can all meet back at the clock in a varga?” Shiro responded, looking up at Lotor.

“I should only need a quarter of that time.” Lotor replied, giving the paladins a polite bow and excusing himself. Lance grew suspicious of where the Prince was going and was about to follow him.

“Ah-ah-ah, you can just stick with us Lance.” Shiro put a hand on Lance’s shoulder, causing Lance to groan in defeat.

It wasn’t long before the group had returned home to the Castle of Lions. Coran and Allura waited on the bridge for their return, passing the time by watching the mice preform different tricks. Lance was the first to enter the bridge, followed by a chattering crowd.

“How was the space mall?” Allura asked, her voice beginning to sound less sick than before.

“Oh it was great, Lotor bought us so much stuff!” Pidge exclaimed, holding up the bags full of all the stuff the paladins picked out from the Earth store.

“Lotor bought it?” Coran exclaimed, as surprised as Pidge and Lance had been. Lotor nodded towards Coran and smiled softly.

“It was the least I could do, seeing as you have kept me safe from death by my father’s hands,” Lotor replied, “I may have also taken the liberty to pick this out for you princess Allura.” Lotor said reaching into his pocket; he pulled out a small box and handed it to her.  
Allura’s eyes lit up as she opened the box, “oh Lotor you shouldn’t have!” She exclaimed pulling out a small, crescent moon shaped pendant. It sparkled radiantly in the bridge’s lighting, but not as radiantly as Allura’s eyes were. Meanwhile Lance was glaring daggers into the back of the Prince’s head.

“It’s so shiny,” Allura smiled, putting the pendant on, “thank you Lotor.”

“It was my pleasure Princess.”


	5. Part 5: "Victory or Death"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I totally did not listen to the Tetris theme on repeat for an hour and nineteen minutes while writing this, nope, nope I did not.
> 
> This also stems from a headcanon of mine where Pidge would show Lotor video games, and his favourites would be strategy J/RPG's and puzzle games.

“Alright, so you press this button until the piece that’s falling is in the position you want it.” Pidge pointed at the small screen as Lotor just blinked in seeming confusion. The faint melodic beeps repeating themselves after so many notes was almost hypnotic and Lotor found himself completely enthralled. Hunk and Pidge had been developing something in the castle lab, something that had them extremely excited; and Lotor was curious.

“And the point of this is exactly?” Lotor asked, never moving his eyes off the tiny grey screen as small blocks fell onto each other.

“It’s a puzzle game to help you think, the further you go the harder it gets.” Hunk replied as he finished packing away all his equipment. Pidge placed the small blue rectangle in Lotor’s hands.

“It’s not a perfect Gameboy colour, but it’ll do.” She grinned at herself, having programmed everything inside the tiny rectangle. And tiny it was in Lotor’s hands.

“Gameboy colour? That’s what you call this device?” Lotor asked as he turned over the device to inspect in, it seemed crude in design; there were only four buttons and some type of control pad on the left. The screen displayed varying shades of mute colours.

“Here watch.” Pidge sighed and took the Gameboy colour back from Lotor and leaned over so he could see over her shoulder easier, “You hit this button to rotate the pieces that are falling, this button makes it fall faster, this one pauses the game, and this here is the direction pad so you can move the piece to whatever side of the screen you want.”

Lotor nodded feeling like he was catching on; it seemed fascinating to him how humans could find entertainment in something so mundane. Pidge placed the device back in Lotor’s hands and he began to slowly press the buttons as his muscle began to learn the movements.

“Okay good, now you wanna match the pieces together so they form a line and—There you got it!” Hunk exclaimed as he watched Lotor slowly figure out the goal of this game.

“And when does it end?” Lotor asked curiously.

“That’s the best part, it only ends if you fail.” Pidge grinned, “and it gets harder the longer you play.”

Lotor’s eyes seemed to shine in captivation as he looked down at the screen, a game that has no true victory, how fascinating to him. All the games he had known in his own culture had victory, usually at the cost of another’s life, never before had he encountered something that is deemed unbeatable.

“Fascinating.” Lotor whispered as his eyes locked to the screen, already the pieces had begun to move more rapidly and he had difficulty keeping up. Until the game over screen appeared.

“Oh looks like you let some of the blocks tower too high, you gonna try again?” Hunk asked looking at Lotor, whose eyes had still not left the screen. Lotor nodded sharply. The half-blood Prince pressed play and began again, this time taking more caution as the pieces fall. Pidge and Hunk grinned at each other as they watch the half-Altean Prince lose himself to the game. The pair spent some time watching him, yet it did not take long for them to realize that this next round might be a while.

“Well we’re gonna go grab something to eat, are you interested Lotor?” Hunk asked, standing up and stretching his arms above his head.

“No that’s quite alright.” Lotor never looked away from the screen. Pidge snickered to herself and Hunk.

“Alright we’ll come check on you later.” Pidge replied as her and Hunk left the castle’s lab.

When the pair returned some time later they were shocked to find Lotor still slouched over, eyes fixated on the screen. Only this time Lotor’s fingers were moving much faster.

“Have you been playing this entire time?” Hunk asked in surprise.

“I haven’t lost yet.” Lotor replied curtly, eyes locked onto the pieces he was carefully moving into place.

“Well don’t forget to blink.” Pidge responded. Lotor gave a small nod before blinking, he hadn’t realized how long it had been since he last blinked, how dry his eyes had become.

“Well you have fun then, Shiro wants to go do some bonding exercise again.” Hunk told Lotor, but at this point Lotor had stopped paying attention, his need for victory outweighing common courtesy. Pidge and Hunk look towards each other, what have we done.

The next day Pidge entered the castle lab, shocked to find the half-Altean Prince in the exact same position. His once yellow sclera had now become tinged somewhat green, almost as if he hadn’t blinked since Pidge last warned him.

“Are you STILL playing that?” Pidge asked in astonishment.

“I haven’t lost yet.” Was all Lotor could reply.

“It’s been a full day! For fuck sakes how can you even keep your eyes open?” Pidge asked. She received silence from the Prince as he continued to press the buttons, faster and faster. He was in a complete trance.

“I’m going to have to take it away from you.” Pidge told him, attempting to reach for the Gameboy colour. Lotor evaded with ease causing Pidge to glare at him.

“No you really need to stop playing this isn’t healthy for a human, so it can’t be healthy for a Galra either!” Pidge growled at each evasion the Prince pulled. She was at her wits end trying to stop him.

“I haven’t lost yet paladin Pidge, now if you’ll excuse me.” Lotor attempted to take his leave without removing his gaze from the screen. However the half-blood Prince wasn’t expecting to bump into the Paladin of the Red Lion. This brief moment was all it took for Lotor’s streak to end, and with it his chance at finding victory in a game deemed unbeatable.

“Woah watch where you’re going Prince Loafer.” Lance glared up at Lotor whose face had turned into one of defeat. All of his hard work and dedication towards this game, gone in one instant.

“I guess you lost this time eh Lotor?” Pidge smirked, reaching to take the Gameboy colour back. He moved the Gameboy colour away from Pidge’s reach. Lotor blinked a few times, giving his eyes the hydration they so desperately desired.

“Nonsense, it’s victory or death.”


	6. Part 6: "The Prince's New Look"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I don’t believe Lotor planned everything; there are just way too many variables in play for it to actually work out for him (not to mention his face seemed pretty genuine when Acxa shot him, and it wasn’t like Zethrid and Ezor were close enough to see his face so there’d be no reason to look so betrayed.) But that’s my speculation and because of that it has influenced this piece a teeny-tiny extent.  
> Also Lotor + Princess tropes is the shit I need right now

Lotor found the days in his cell seemed to drag. Staring around the room lost all significance when he had already looked at the same wall a thousand times, the same floor, the same ceiling. It was trying staring off, but he knew his patience would yield results. He just had to wait for the Paladins to understand, for the Princess to understand. 

A loud sigh escaped his lips. 10,000 years of life was nothing compared to looking at the same scenery for months. Lotor let out a soft sigh and leaned back onto the cells bed, closing his eyes and reminiscing about the past. The choices he’s had to make along the way; the allies he’s lost because of those choices. All Lotor was able to do was think and reflect on his mistakes. 

He was completely lost in thought until he could hear a faint chattering sound. He set up opening his eyes to see four small mice outside of his cell.  
Lotor tilted his head, had these creatures always been on the ship? Lotor wondered as he stared at them. The mice seemed to chatter to themselves before disappearing above the ceiling of Lotor’s cell. He cocked an eyebrow, curious as to what they were doing. After a few moments he heard four small thuds behind him.

Lotor turned his head to look at the tiny creatures that had come to visit him. They varied in size and shape, one was large with yellow and green fur, another was pink, and two smaller blue creatures. Lotor eyed them with suspicion, he knew they were the Princess’s pets in a sense, however he had no idea why they would seek him out. Lotor leaned closer to inspect the intruders. At least now he had something to entertain his thoughts instead of dwelling on the past.

“What are you four up to?” Lotor asked as they marched towards him and climbed onto his lap. Lotor seemed genuinely confused by this action; he even thought to brush them off, gently of course as to not garner wrath from the Princess. Instead he let them crawl up his body, sniffing at different parts of his armor. He watched intently as they climbed up his shoulders and they began to play with his hair.

“So that’s your aim is it?” Lotor side eyed the mice, but let them continue. He saw no harm in what they were doing, and it was almost soothing. He closed his eyes and allowed them to weave his hair this way and that, he’d brush it out later, but for now he was content. His mind drifting away becoming lost in thought, though it was about the peaceful times with his allies now.

Lotor lost track of how long the mice had been tying and twisting his hair, and it wasn’t until a loud cough echoed throughout the room that he finally opened his eyes again. Lotor sat up hastily, not realizing that three of the paladins stood before him: Shiro, Lance, and Allura.

“Woah what happened to your hair Prince Lotion?” Lance was snickering, and even the Princess couldn’t hide her amusement. Shiro himself had a small smirk upon seeing the Prince’s new look. Lotor glowered noticing in his reflection off the floor what the mice had done. His hair tied and knotted in many different places, seemingly defying gravity.

“Lance don’t be rude.” Shiro said sternly looking at the young boy, “Lotor you said you had more information on the Galra Empire?”

“Ah—yes the moon of Tragoch, that’s where the Galra are building their upgraded sentries…” Lotor began; ears drooped slightly at the embarrassment of giving an intelligence meeting whilst one of the Paladins continued to snicker silently to himself. Lotor knew this was something that wouldn’t be forgotten by any of them.


	7. Part 7: "Incredible Accomplishment"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big wonderful shout out to myhyperfixations for helping edit this short! You're amazing <3

Allura and Shiro stood on the bridge of the Castle of Lions, facing a large monitor displaying Kolivan and Keith. They were discussing the recent events of the Kral Zera and both Allura and Kolivan were chastising Shiro for his choice to take Lotor to Feyiv.  
  
“It was reckless and nearly jeopardized everything we have worked for Shiro!” Allura scolded him. Shiro remained unflinching, crossing his arms and glaring at her.  
  
“How about the fact that the Blades didn’t bother to mention their planned assault on the Galra Commanders to us?” Shiro retorted; Keith looked at his mentor with concern in his eyes.  
  
“That’s not the point Shiro; the point is we could have lost the Paladin of the Black Lion.” Kolivan replied dryly.  
  
“But we didn’t and now we have Lotor set as Emperor of the Galra Empire, we’re in a perfect position to begin changing it for the better.” Shiro argued. The anger beginning to rise in Allura.  
  
“You can’t just go around making decisions without consulting us first!” Allura snapped.  
  
“Um, I think Shiro has a good point.” Keith piped in, everyone’s head turning towards him. Shiro could feel how awkward and tense Keith was in speaking up at this moment, but he smiled at his friend nonetheless.  
  
“Keith do not encourage him—“ Allura began before a baritone cough erupted from behind. Shiro and Allura turned to see Lotor standing in the entryway of the bridge with a blank expression.  
  
“I believe I would have to agree with Shiro and the young blade. If Shiro had not approached me about attending the Kral Zera, I would not be the current Emperor, that role would belong to Sendak. A person I highly suspect no one in the Coalition or the Blades would want to see seated on the throne.” Lotor coolly replied as he stepped towards the monitor to stand beside Shiro. Allura let out a frustrated sigh.  
  
“You may be right on that Lotor, but that doesn’t change the fact that Shiro went against what we had all agreed on.” Allura chastised, her expression firm.  
  
“Certainly, Princess, but you cannot change the past, you can only mold the future into the outcome you would wish to see.” Lotor replied calmly, contrasting Allura’s frustration. She turned back towards Kolivan who had fallen silent, unable to disagree with the Emperor’s words.  
  
“I believe our debriefing is finished now Kolivan. If you’ll excuse us.” Allura said, addressing Kolivan after gauging the Blade’s reaction to the Emperor.  
  
“Yes, Princess Allura. I will have the Blade transfer the data from recent missions that may be of interest to Voltron.” Kolivan said as Allura reached to end the transmission.  
  
“Wait, if I may have a word with the young blade, Keith was it?” Lotor looked towards Keith on the screen whose eyes widened slightly.  
  
“Me?” Keith asked and Lotor nodded.  
  
“I don’t see a problem with that do you Princess?” Shiro looked towards Allura who let her shoulders fall in defeat.  
  
“Very well.” Allura sighed; she was still frustrated about Shiro’s complete disobedience regarding the Kral Zera. She quickly left the Bridge, deciding some time alone with the mice may help ease her frustration.  
  
“It’s good to see you Keith.” Shiro smiled at him and Keith gave him a half smile in return; it had been too long since they’d seen each other in person.  
  
“It’s good to see you too Shiro, I hope the others haven’t been too much.” Keith replied, his glance jumping between him and Lotor. What could Lotor possibly want to talk to _him_  about?  
   
“Nothing I can’t handle.” Shiro grinned, looking towards Lotor, “oh? Did you want to talk to Keith in private?”  
   
“Preferably so.” Lotor replied standing there and waiting patiently for the Black Paladin to finish speaking with his friend. Shiro nodded. Kolivan took this as his cue to step away from the monitor as well and began finishing preparations for the next mission.  
   
“Of course, we’ll talk again sometime soon okay Keith?” Shiro looked back towards the monitor at Keith who nodded in response.  
   
“Stay safe out there Shiro.” Keith replied.  
   
“You too, Keith.” Shiro smiled back, leaving the bridge and the two half-Garla alone together.  
   
There was a breath of silence that to Keith, seemed to last an eternity as they stared at each other. Keith had never gotten a chance to really speak directly to Lotor. Sure, there was a brief conversation they had at the Kral Zera once things calmed down, but Keith was so quickly whisked away by the Blades that he never got a proper chance to converse with him.  
   
“So uh… you wanted to say something to me?” Keith started, staring awkwardly towards the Emperor.  
   
“You are a member of the Blade of Marmora, so there must be Galra blood in your ancestry, yet you look like the other humans. I assume it safe to say that you, at most, are half-Galra.” Lotor stated, eyeing the young blade. It was impossible for Keith to tell what he was thinking.  
  
“I—uh yeah my mom must have been Galra or something like that.” Keith replied, looking down towards the ground, Lotor taking obvious notice at the boy’s discomfort.  
  
“I know you must have been surrounded by a negative perception of the Galra for quite some time, but make no mistake there is no shame to be found in being a hybrid; if anything, you can consider it a strength. Two different beings with vastly different backgrounds being able to find common ground and make something new is quite an incredible accomplishment.” Lotor stated with a serious expression. Keith was left speechless, it wasn’t often he heard someone praise him for his half Galra heritage, let alone call him an incredible accomplishment. Lotor continued,  
  
“I understand it must be difficult to come to terms with such contrasting heritages, but you’ll become much stronger for it once you’ve found acceptance and balance for both.” Lotor finished, staring at Keith with a confident gaze; Keith shifted uncomfortably where he stood.  
  
“I don’t know, I mean, I only recently found out that I’m half Galra. And I guess I’m just sort of confused with how that changed the way everyone viewed me. I thought I was still just me.” Keith confessed; it almost felt relieving to admit it finally. How strange it felt when people started treating him so differently, how it also hurt him deep, “I guess I still feel somewhat disconnected to it in a way.”

Lotor nodded, watching to see if Keith would continue his confession or not. When he didn’t Lotor took it upon himself to continue, “That’s to be expected, however there will come a time where you’ve accepted both sides of yourself and even embrace it in a way; like myself.”

Keith nodded, unsure of how to respond to such a confession from the Emperor.

“I would also like to extend a proper thank you for your effort in saving me during the Kral Zera; despite the fact that it was you who were part of the initial team brought in to bomb the event. You went out of your way, and risked your own life to save mine, and for that I am grateful to you, Keith.” Lotor confessed, his eyes never leaving Keith; while Keith was having difficulty keeping eye contact.

“Ah—don’t mention it, I mean you’ve done the same for me.” Keith didn’t realize what he had said and by then it was too late.

“I have? When exactly?” Lotor was curious, trying to recall any time he and the Red Paladin had ever interacted.

“Back at Naxzela, before you fired at the cruiser and broke through its shield, I was—“ Keith recalled, going silent at the thought of his potential sacrifice for the greater good.

“Ah I see now, you were the one who was about to fly into the shield in an attempt to disrupt it.” Lotor looked at Keith with sympathy, knowing all too well that Keith’s plan of self-sacrifice had been unnoticed, as it seemed none of the Paladins knew of it.

“Yeah, I was, I guess it was a good thing you came along when you did.” Keith sighed, he wasn’t one to normally talk about this type of thing. Perhaps it was the screens between the two of them, or perhaps it was because he felt a kindred spirit in Lotor.

“Yes otherwise—“ Lotor began before a loud groan erupted behind him.

“Oh, for crying out loud, is there anywhere on this ship where I don’t run into you, prince Lorax?” Lance sighed loudly, glancing towards the monitor, “Oh hey it’s Keith!”

“Lorax?” Lotor seemed confused at the unfamiliar word and he turned to Keith.

“That’s just Lance being a dunce like usual.” Keith sighed and shut his eyes to Lance’s screech.

“What did you call me you little—“ Lance began and started to stomp towards the monitor.

“Oops sorry- bad connection… gotta go—“ Keith made terrible impressions of radio static as his hand clearly reached towards the end transmission button.

“Oh don’t you run away from me Keith or I sw—“ Lance ranted, growing silent as soon as Keith shut the transmission. He glared at Lotor, “well what are you looking at?”

Lotor looked at Lance with a bit of surprise at his emotional outburst before responding with a smirk, “Nothing, Lance,” his smirk widened, “The dunce.” 


	8. Part 8: "Let's Dig In!"

Lotor found himself wandering aimlessly around the halls of the Castle of Lions, unable to sleep after having killed his father. It had only been two sleep cycles since, but Lotor found himself completely at a loss. He knew one day Zarkon would die, but he never imagined it would be _his_  hands that would be stained with Zarkon’s blood. As Lotor wandered he could hear clanging as he turned down the hall towards the kitchen; curious Lotor poked his head in through the doorway to assess the source of the noise.

Hunk was puttering away in the kitchen; tasting different foods with a slight pout. He was attempting to recreate a familiar dish, but nothing came out quite right, nothing brought out that nostalgia he craved for. Hunk let out a weakened sigh, forced to be content with what he had at hand.

“Paladin Hunk what are you doing up still?” Lotor asked in curiosity as he stepped towards the young boy.

“Oh hey Lotor, I uhh am trying to make something my mom would make all the time, it’s called fa’apapa, but nothing tastes right; I guess coconut isn’t a common flavor in space.” Hunk let out a defeated sigh and began putting some of the ingredients away. He figured he would just have to settle for some food goo as a late night snack.

“What is a coconut?” Lotor asks as he leans against the counter. Lotor was always fascinated with other cultures, and food culture happened to be a particular favourite of his, Hunk’s eyes lit up at Lotor’s curiosity.

“It’s a seed that grows on trees back on earth, it’s sweet, but not many people enjoy it because it’s kinda an acquired taste.” Hunk explained with a light in his eyes, “see it’s got this hard shell on the outside, but on the inside is where the flesh and coconut water is which is the part most people eat.”

Lotor nodded searching for more answers he inquired, “and this fa’apapa requires the flesh or the water?”

“Both actually! Fa’apapa is bread that uses both the milk and the flesh together. My mom used to make it every morning for me and my family.” Hunk smiled sadly and Lotor could tell why. Hunk continued, “I guess I’ll have to wait until we eventually get to go home to have some again.”

Lotor began looking over the ingredients carefully, “you may not be able to make a traditional earth dish with those ingredients there, but with these ones I could show you how to create a tradition dish that comes from the planet _Illaduv_ , if you would like to learn.”

“Of course! But uhh… when did the Prince of the Galra ever find time to cook?” Hunk’s eyes lit up again in fascination. He watched as Lotor grabbed the main ingredients for this dish he was referencing and set them down on the counter closest to Hunk.

“My father was always against my learning of any of the tasks that the servant class participated in, in his words, ‘it is a servant’s place to cook.’ Naturally I decided to learn anyways.” Lotor stated as he reached for the main ingredient, a strange creature that was sealed into a container; many, _many_  legs protruded from its black body, and it had a carapace as hard as stone.

“Heh I guess you’re not so different from us after all. Rebelling against your father and all.” Hunk replied while looking at the creature in Lotor’s hands, “so what’s that thing?”

“This is a _yvi_ , there is no meat in its legs,” Lotor began as he removed each leg by snapping it off and continued his instructions, “next is the carapace. That _has_  to be removed before cooking.”

“Oh how come?” Hunk asked leaning in to watch as Lotor carefully took a knife and flipped the creature over to reveal its fleshy belly; watching as the Prince began to slowly cut around the edges of the carapace.

“The carapace will emit a toxin when heated and will infuse with the meat. If consumed carelessly it will cause hallucinations and potential death.” Lotor explained casually and Hunk stared down at the creature in wonder and fear. Lotor looked over to the counter, “Hunk would you be interested in grabbing the _brin_  and bring it over.”

Hunk blinked in confusion as he followed Lotor’s pointed finger. He took a step to the side in order to reach the bag of small violet vegetables that was lying on the counter, “you mean these?”

Lotor nodded, “and the _rymni_  that’s beside it as well.”

Hunk looked and grabbed the round blue vegetable that had been lying beside the _brin_ , “so what’s this dish called anyways?”

“The dish is called _roph_. On the planet _Illaduv_  their main source of protein comes from their oceans, and this is a particular delicacy due to the rarity of _yvi_.”

“Woah you really know a lot about this stuff, you should have your own cooking show.” Hunk remarked as he set the vegetables down on the counter where Lotor was preparing the creature. Lotor raised one of his eyebrows in confusion.

“A cooking show? Is that something you humans find entertaining?” Lotor asked as he began dicing the _brin_  and placing it into the same dish as the _yvi_.

“Oh totally, well there’s lots of different shows for entertainment, I just prefer the cooking ones myself.” Hunk replied as he grabbed a knife, “now how do I cut this, _rymni_  you called it?”

Lotor nodded and continued, “that does not have to be cut as small as the _brin_  does.” Lotor grabbed the _rymni_  and cut it in half, then began slicing it into strips.

“Cool it’s kinda like an onion.” Hunk remarked, grabbing the other half and beginning to slice it the same as Lotor had.

“Is that something found on Earth?” Lotor asked as he finished placing the last of the _rymni_  into the dish before placing it in the oven to begin cooking.

“Yeah it’s a vegetable, it’s used in a lot of different dishes, it’s not very sweet though.” Hunk explained; Lotor nodded as he leaned against the counter.

“What other types of sweet dishes are there?” Lotor inquired, having a soft spot for sweets. Hunk began to think raising his hand to his chin.

“Well there’s panikeke, that’s made with bananas.” Hunk replied looking over towards the Prince, “it’s a fried sweet bread, it also has vanilla in it too. But I prefer chocolate and bananas myself though.”

“Chocolate?” Lotor asked staring at the young Paladin.

“Oh chocolate is the best! If you like sweet stuff you’d probably really enjoy it.” Lotor’s eyes lit up and Hunk laughs slightly continuing on, “it’s made from cocoa beans, they actually start out _really_  bitter, and in order to get the right flavour you have to ferment them first.”

“After fermenting them you have to roast them, then afterwards you remove the shell to get to the, what was it called again?” Hunk paused for a moment, the word he needed escaping him for a brief moment, “oh right, you get to the nibs, which then you grind them into a powder and used in different things.”

“Fascinating, I have not meet many cultures that ferment their foods. Even the Galra have never practiced such a thing.” Lotor explained.

“Oh humans ferment a lot of different foods to get new flavors, like cheese, pickling, wines and alcohols, even yogurt!” Hunk explained excitedly, he was enjoying teach the Prince these things. It was a wonderful change of pace from the past few days, and was helping Hunk feel a little less homesick.

The oven timer went off, indicating that the _roph_  was done. Hunk grabbed the oven mitts and put them on, opening the door to the oven and taking in the spicy fragrance of the dish. He smiled as he grabbed it out of the oven and placed it on the counter to cool.

“This smells fantastic Lotor.” Hunk grinned as he went to grab some plates and cutlery, Lotor smiled towards the Paladin as he stepped closer to the _roph_  on the counter.

Hunk began placing the plates in front of the two; not noticing Lance had snuck himself into the kitchen, “woah Hunk that smells amazing, but what is prince Lotion doing here?”

Lotor just gives Lance a side eye, choosing to ignore the comment and watch as Lance began to dig into the dish without waiting for a reply.

“Hunk this is _amazing_! You out did yourself!” Lance exclaimed, mouth still stuffed as he continued shovelling more into his mouth. Hunk began to snicker towards his friend before replying.

“You know you should be complimenting Lotor, since he made it.” Hunk gave Lance a sly grin as Lance’s smile began to fade and turn into a scowl, glaring towards Lotor.

“It’s not that great.” Lance states flatly, putting some more of the _roph_  onto his plate before leaving the kitchen back towards his room. Hunk just smiles and shakes his head at Lance.

“He truly does not like me very much does he?” Lotor states.

“He’s just Lance, that’s all. Give him some time to come around.” Hunk responded grabbing a plateful for himself and then one for Lotor, passing Lotor his plate, “let’s dig in.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone pictured an alien isopod, because that's totally what they ate.


End file.
